An Unlikely Replacement
by Mysteria Pearl
Summary: Mid-season, Takeshi is forced to take a break from racing for his mental health. With no other possible replacement, a shy little redheaded secretary is forced behind the wheel.
1. Chapter 1

Hi, it's MP again! Yes, it's another Jesse x River fic, but it's also just a very sweet romance between two people who seem to have all odds against them (including one persistent boss)

Mid season, Takeshi is forced to take a break from racing for his mental health. With Andre on vacation with his family and with no other possible replacement, a shy little redheaded secretary is forced behind the wheel. A sweet romance develops between she and a tall blonde who just happens to be her boss's enemy.

**Chapter one- You're Facing…**

"Yeah, just take a left adn then the hatch is to your right. Just page Mark on the intercom and he'll let you in... so when do you think this will be done?"

"By six or so, Ma'am. I'm supposed to be installing one on all the teams in order of their races; you and Sledgemamma are first on my list."

"Oh really? That's nice. Well, here's my cell phone number if you run into any difficulties."

"Thank ye' much, Ma'am"

Jesse bowed to the man and continued on her way. He-- Mr. Jackson, that is, had been sent over by the board with some new standard equiptment for all the mechs. He was supposed to install it himself in order to get the wires in correctly... or something. Jesse shrugged as she hurrired down the hall. The man had said something about the equiptment being loudspeakers for the fans, but she hadn't caught everything because his voice was so slow and rough.

She reached her boss's door and knocked quietly,  
"Miss Satomi?" Jesse asked quietly as she poked her head into the brightly lit office.

Miss Satomi looked up from her paperwork. She was standing behind her messy desk and looked absolutely frazzled.

"Mark said you wanted to see me… any particular reason?" The red head asked as she took a seat.

Miss Satomi ran a hand through her hair,

"Well… um… I'm in a little bit of a bind and I need your help…"

Jesse nodded,  
"Sure! I'll try to handle it if I can. What's the problem?"

Miss Satomi plopped down in her chair and set her chin lazily on her hand,  
"Takeshi took a… well… a little bit of a… a _brake_." she said slowly

"Really? How do you mean? He's still around, I just passed him on the way here."

"Well… I had to give him the week off from racing, he'll just have to work in the background for awhile... He's far too stressed and frankly, that's not good for his mental health."

Jesse thought for a moment,  
"I thought you said you would never, ever, ever, EVER--"

Miss Satomi cut her off,  
"I know what I said. But the team was suffering because of his lack of focus."

"Okay…" Jesse said, "But I don't see what all this has to do with me…"

Miss Satomi smiled,  
"As I was saying. With Takeshi gone, we have an open spot--"

Now it was Jesse's turn to interrupt,  
"I bet now you _really_ wish you had kept River here." She said, narrowing her eyes and cocking her head a bit.

Miss Satomi's smile disappeared and she waved her hand, dismissing her comment,  
"Anyway, you and I both know something the world doesn't, am I correct?"

Jesse hugged her clipboard,  
"That River looks really good in tight jeans?" She blurted, turning bright red and quickly covering her mouth a smidge too late.

"Ye-- Wait, what!?"

Jesse giggled nervously,  
"Um-- nothing! Nothing… um… please continue."

Miss Satomi raised an eyebrow, she was completely oblivious to the large crush Jesse had on the tall, thin, blonde, green eyed Canadian pilot.  
"Anyway, the thing you and I both know is that you're our secret back up pilot--"

"Wait!" Jesse cried,  
"This is what you called me in for!? You want _me_ to replace _Takeshi_ as a _forwar_d!?"

Miss Satomi smiled cunningly,  
"Well, it _is _on your contract…"

Jesse's eyes were wide and she stood,  
"You just have Liz and Amy race-- or-- or have Andre fill in again-- or Mark! Mark could do it, I'm sure he knows how--"

Miss Satomi stood up and slammed her fist down on the table,  
"Listen you! I want three pilots and I'm gonna GET three pilots! Andre's on vacation with his wife and daughter and Mark is barely of the age or stamina to race, besides, he's larger than Takeshi and wouldn't fit into the MECH properly! So YOU are going to race! Do I make myself clear!?" she shouted.

Jesse nodded as she backed towards the door,  
"C-Clear as crystal, Ma'am…" She managed to say weakly before she turned towards the door and fled as quickly as her feet could take her. She ran past a confused looking Amy and Liz and then blew between Andre and Mark.

She almost collided into Takeshi as she ran into a dark conference room and threw herself down on a wooden chair, sobbing uncontrollably.

The place where she cried was even vaguely unfamiliar to her. Recently there had been a fire in the Satomi headquarters. Her entire dorm had been scorched along with everything in it. Ever since her parents died from disease, she had been searching for a home…and as soon as she had finally found one… it had burned almost all the way to the ground. She couldn't live there for now, so she had to take her things (her purse, her teddy bear, and a few clothes that Amy, Liz, and even Fantine had given her) and move into the International Headquarters of the IG1-- the very place where teams came from all around the world to practice and to stay for the training season-- and things like that.

So there she sat, slumped over in a terribly uncomfortable position on a hard chair in a dark room with her head in her arms on the wooden table before her. She could hear the pitter-patter of the rain outside; it was a very dreary day, just like her mood, and the room around her seemed to shine every shade of sad gray. She could only cry.

Since when had Miss Satomi become so very mean? Sure, Jesse had heard Miss Satomi bark at Takeshi from time to time, but never, EVER had Miss Satomi snapped at _her_. While she was crying, her mind began to register the sound of loud boot-steps approaching.

"Miss Martin?" she wiped her eyes as she sat up. Her heart began to thump wildly as her eyes rested upon the most drop-dead-gorgeous man in the world. River Marque.

He stood there in sweatpants and an unzipped jacket with three or four notebooks as well as his black workout shirt clutched in his long, strong hands. His eye shone and the pale light created shadows where his muscles were; his chest bare and his legs so slender and long. His one earring glittered as his head turned and he sat down in the chair next to her.

Jesse didn't want him to know how much she was blushing as she stared at his oh-so-well built body-- she could see that he had been working out recently, because he was shirtless and the sweat glistened on his muscular chest. So, she dropped her head back onto her arms and sniffed.

"I heard that the Satomi HQ burnt to the ground…" he mused quietly,

"So… you, Mark and Satomi are living here for now, huh?"

Jesse sniffed in reply

"What's wrong?" He asked in the silence. She mumbled something and River sighed.

"You know I can't understand that." He said as he got up and knelt down next to her,

"Hello? What's up?"

"I… I'm f-fine," Jesse managed to say shakily.

There was nothing but silence after that and Jesse assumed that he had gone to leave her alone in her misery.

'He's gone... He's really gone… he just left… I'm gl--' She stopped, mid thought (as did her heart) as she felt a warm sensation. She opened her eyes just a crack and realized that River had wrapped his arms around her and had laid his head on her back.

River sighed to himself,  
'Her heart is beating fast... heh…' he thought to himself

Some voice in his head said, 'She really is the cutest girl you've ever laid eyes… uh... _eye_ on… she's sweet and beautiful… not at all like those rabid fan girls or those toughies who think they're cool. If you think about it, she's always been nice to you and you love--' River's eyes flew open,

'HOLD IT!' his residential mental skeptic shouted 'Where on earth did THAT come from!?' But, River couldn't deny how his mind and body tingled as he breathed in her perfume.

As River snuggled closer, Jesse could feel her heart race all the way up to her throat and all the guts melt down to her toes. Never had she been so close to him before. His body was so warm! And his pale white skin... it was so soft… She shivered as his soft, blonde hair lightly brushed against back of her neck. His breath tickled her ear and she sighed as her face practically burned,

"Miss Martin?" River mumbled, with his eyes still closed; still completely soaked up in the moment.

Jesse sniffed,  
"Yes…"

Her voice snapped him out of his stupor and his consciousness finally came back to him,  
"What's wrong?" He asked as he sat back on his haunches and tucked a lock of her rusty-red hair behind her ear.

Jesse turned to him so that her knees and her body were facing him and became crimson when she noticed how close his handsome face was to hers. Instead at staring at his perfect face, she stared, red faced down at her knees.

Tomato-face stumbled,  
"I… M-Miss Satomi wants m-me to…" she trailed off as tears stung at her eyes, trying to break out and spill down her face.

"Shh…" River mumbled as he pulled out a hanky and handed it to her. Then he got down on his knees, set his left hand to the right of her knee on the wooden chair, and gently lifted her chin with his right hand. Jesse gripped the hanky and held it kind of absentmindedly near her neck.

"She wants me to race in place of Takeshi…" she said quietly.

River drew himself so that his face was a mere inch from Jesse's and he rested his forehead against hers; Jesse could hardly breathe, her eyes wide and her heart beating wildly.  
"Tomorrow?" River's question caught her off guard,

"Hmmn?" She couldn't help noticing how warm his breath had felt and how minty-fresh is was. She longed to have him gently touch her lips with his…

"The race, tomorrow. Is that the race Satomi wants you to pilot in?" Jesse sniffed and managed to mumble,

"Yeah…"

"Have you ever raced in a real IG1 race before?"

"No…"

"Have you ever raced on a real track against real competitors?"

"…yes…"

River gently took the purple hanky from her and wiped Jesse's eyes, his warm, soft hand brushing against hers,  
"Do you know who you're racing?" He asked softly.

Jesse sniffed and her lip quivered,  
"No… Miss Satomi never told me…"

River chuckled and whispered,  
"Don't worry... I'll make sure no one lays a _finger_ on you."

Jesse's eye lit up,  
"What? How!? But… but… do you know who I'm racing!?" River smiled,

"Yeah."

"Who!?"

Jesse realized suddenly that the space between their faces was beginning to rapidly decrease. Her heart thumped so wildly in her chest that she thought it would burst. Colour rose to her cheeks and she felt her breath shorten. She noticed, all at once, that River's face had deepened into a dark burgundy colour.

'Is-- is he blushing?'

River leaned in, his breath tickled her ear as he softly whispered,

"You're facing… _Me_." He ran a hand through her longish red hair as he stood up; a handsome smirk on his face.

River turned away from the stunned teenage girl to make his leave,

"River, wait!"

River turned and smiled at her, his mind full of her loveliness,  
"See you tomorrow, out on the track." He walked out, leaving Jesse, absolutely stunned.

River walked down the hall, a tinge red

"Hey." River looked up at Takeshi with his arms crossed,

"I saw that."

"Saw what?"

"I saw you with Jesse-- holding her." Takeshi said with his arms crossed. River glared at him,

"What's your point? It was a sign of respect and care toward Miss Martin." River said with a smirk

"I know what you're doing." Takeshi spat

"Humour me." He said, squinting his visible eye.

"You're trying to get her to blow the race."

"That's bogus, man. I wouldn't do that. Well, maybe to you, but not to _her_."

Takeshi huffed at the statement.

"Aren't you supposed to be gone, somewhere far, _far _away?" River asked his friend

"I'll believe you," Takeshi said,

"About not making Jesse suffer. I know you're head over heals for her and-" As quick as a flash, River had him in a headlock,  
"Dude! Be quiet!" He hissed.

"Why should I?" Takeshi asked, his voice muffled.

"Dude, don't you _dare_ tell her that I…" his voice faded as he heard somebody call for Takeshi. Takeshi pulled away from the 'friendly' headlock and ran down the stairs,

"See ya later, bro!"

River made his way further down the hall when someone grabbed his shoulder and spun him around.

"Gyah!" River shouted as he faced Miss Satomi, who had her arms crossed and was tapping her pointed shoe quickly on the floor.

"Good. I've finally found you. Listen blonde boy," Miss Satomi hissed menacingly as Yamma walked up behind her.

"Don't you _dare_ go easy on Jesse tomorrow. I want her first real race to be **real**! Got that!?" she yelled.

River smirked and almost had to suppress a laugh,

"You're not my superior anymore, Satomi."

"Well I am." River shifted his glare to Yamma who pushed past Miss Satomi, grabbing River's ear,

"We'll talk about this later, kid. Bye, Satomi." With that, Yamma dragged River out by the earring,

"Satomi!" Miss Satomi turned back to River,

"Tell Miss Martin bye for me!"

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So? Enjoy it? I hope so. Please **please** **PLEASE** review. This is actually going to be a chapter story, so I'll probably post the next chapter soon! Thank you very much for reading!

Mysteria Pearl


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello, it's Mysteria Pearl again! Here's chapter 2; I had to revise it a couple of times…**

**Disclaimer: IGPX isn't mine and probably won't be unless I become a producer magically and make a movie from it and make the Jesse x River romance the main plot, but since that probably won't happen, it's not mine. Heheheh. **

**Chapter 2- Yes, Miss Satomi**

Miss Satomi flipped her unruly hair and walked back to where she had seen River exit.

There she found Jesse sitting at the mahogany table near the window with her head in her arms.

"Get up, Jesse." said Miss Satomi as she flicked on the light switch. Jesse sat up with a start, tears overwhelming her eyes. Miss Satomi sat down across from her and Jesse bit her lip.

"You're racing tomorrow." The manager said with a straight face and dull eyes.

Jesse sniffed,

"But… But I can't!! I can't race in an IG1 race! I'm scared! Please," She begged, "Can't you get Takeshi to do it!?"

"No!" Miss Satomi slammed her fist onto the table,

"_I'm_ your boss and your guardian! _I _found you on the street when the fire destroyed everything you had! _I _took you in when no one else would! _My _Grandfather paid for you to go to all the best schools! _I _gave you a job and a place to live! _I've _provided for you for eleven years! _I've _given you everything you need! _You_ are indebted to me! _You _will do what _I _say!" She roared. Jesse's shoulders fell as she stared at her hands, clasped in her lap,

"Yes, Miss Satomi." Miss Satomi smiled suddenly taking on a pleasant air again,

"Good girl," she said a bit too sweetly,

"Now, get some rest. Tomorrow morning, we'll have you a run in the simulator and suit you up. Be in my office (She was using another conference room as her current office) at four."

"Yes, Miss Satomi." Jesse whispered

"Now then," Miss Satomi continued,

"I'll leave you for now, so that you can get all the rest you need," Miss Satomi said , motioning to the makeshift cot that sat in the corner of the now fully-lit conference room,

"I'll send someone to check on you tomorrow morning. If you're not up by at least three-thirty, I'll have them wake you." With that, Miss Satomi stood and stepped to the door,

"If you need anything, I'll be across the building."

"Yes, Miss Satomi."

"Oh," Miss Satomi turned back to Jesse, her suited body a silhouette,

"By the way, blondie wanted me to say goodbye to you for him."

"Thank you, Miss Satomi." Jesse said as she stood and bowed.

"Yeah, yeah. Goodnight." Miss Satomi said as she left,

"Yes Miss Satomi."

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

"Ow! Hey! Watch the earring!" Once they were outside, Yamma released the pilot's ear,

"You just have to get mixed into everybody's business, don'cha, kid?" Yamma asked as he sat down on a bench .

River stuffed his hands in his pockets and said nothing.

"Look, kid, I know you used to be on Team Satomi, but what I don't get is what the heck is going on."

River sighed and sat down next to Yamma on the bench,

"Well… Takeshi's gone mental and is on a forced absence and since there's nobody else to take his place, Jesse is the default racer…" he trailed off as he ran his hands through his hair.

"That's not all on your mind, huh?" Yamma said as he leaned back and put his hands behind his neck.

"No. . ." River mumbled, "The truth is, she was really upset about it. Satomi's being really mean to her even though she doesn't deserve it…"

"Eh, that's just like Satomi. She always seems to pick on the people who are better than her." Yamma said as he closed his eyes.

"Yeah… but what's weirder is that… I don't know…"

"Wha?" the silver haired pilot asked as he opened his right eye.

"I don't know… I guess I'm just confused because I keep feeling strange around her."

"Around Satomi? Eh, that's just nausea. She does that to everybody, trust me--"

"No, not Satomi, although I do feel nauseous around her… I meant…" he sighed, "I meant… well, I meant Miss Martin."

"Who, Pigtails?"

River rolled his eyes,

"Yeah, pigtails. Well… she's kind… and sweet… and… delicate… and I've liked her for awhile now… but… something feels different… it's not just a physical attraction anymore… it's… it's… Arragh… I don't know." He said defeatedly.

Yamma smiled down at the boy knowingly,

"Well, it's decided then." he said as he stood and began to walk away.

"Wait!" River called as he scrambled to his feet and caught up to the older man,

"What's decided?"

Yamma turned to him and smiled,

"You're going to be the lead pilot."

River stopped in his tracks,

"Woah! Really?" Yamma turned and nodded, "Yep. Timma's been itching to get on the track again, so it'll be you, Dimma and Timma. I trust you. Besides, I'll make sure that neither of them dare touch your girlfriend."

River's face grew red,

"But she's not--"

"And I'll act as manager while you race against your girlfriend."

River looked about nervously to make sure nobody else was in hearing distance,

"Yamma-- she's not my--"

"Anyway, better get back now."

"But she-- hey! Yamma--"

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As Miss Satomi walked out into the hall, she almost ran into Takeshi,

"Well, well, Mr. Jin. You seem to be very _underfoot_ lately, haven't you."

"Yes, Miss Satomi." Takeshi muttered.

"Say…" Miss Satomi said, raising her hand and rubbing her chin,

"How would you like to earn fifty bucks and get to bug Jesse?"

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**Well, I hope you enjoyed Chapter 2... It was fun writing it!**

**Have a nice day and please review!**

**Mysteria Pearl**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello, all! Thank you so much for reading this! I really appreciate it!**

**Chapter 3- Surprise, Surprise**

**0o 0o 0o 0o 0o 0o 0o 0o**

"WAKE UP, JESSE!" Jesse bolted up, tightly gripping her teddy bear, one of�the last remnant of her parents that she had.

Takeshi grinned as he shot a picture of her,  
"That would make a great Christmas card, don'cha think?" Takeshi asked as he shoved the camera in Jesse's sleepy face.

"What time is it?" Jesse groaned as she rubbed her eyes.

"Time to wake up!" Takeshi said, rather chipperly. Jesse fell back into her bed.

"Wakey-wakey!" Takeshi shouted in her ear. She swung her pillow at him and managed to catch him in the face.

Takeshi spit out a mouthful of feathers,  
"I didn't think you would be so persistant." He said, beginning to get annoyed

"Too bad." Jesse mumbled as she nestled into her cot.

"Then you force me to take drastic measures!" Takeshi�donned an evil face and he tipped the cot over and�spilled Jesse�as well as�all her bedding onto the floor. Takeshi burst into laughter and wiped his nose.

"Do I really have to get up _now_?" She groaned. 

Takeshi snorted,  
"Yup. I've been waiting here all night just to wake you up!" 

Jesse�raised an eyebrow�as Takeshi pulled her to her feet,  
"All night? You really have no life, do you?" She yawned.

Takeshi grinned dopily,  
"Nope. Now if you excuse me, I'm gonna go try and sell this funny video of you on C-bay!" 

"You're _what?_" Jesse cried as she stumbled to her makeshift dresser (a chest containing all the clothes her friends had given her) and yanked out a yellow T-shirt and a pair of jean capris.

Takeshi laughed,  
"Nothing you need to worry about… I wonder how much River would pay for that" He laughed as he made his exit, closing the door behind him. 

Jesse scowled at the door,  
"He is such a- a- a dork!"

BEEP BEEP BEEEP BEEEEEEEP! 

Jesse jumped as her alarm clock rang out and�dropped her clothes. She grabbed her clock off the floor (since she was without normal pieces of furniture such as side tables, she had to keep her clock on the floor)

"3:56? Oh no! Miss Satomi will kill me!" Jesse shouted as she threw down her alarm clock on the floor and grabbed her fuzzy pink slippers, not caring that she was still in her short pink night gown. She burst out of her room and blew through the hallway and down the stairs, almost tripping over Takeshi. 

Jesse paused and stared for a few moments; Takeshi had apparently been up all night waiting just to wake her up and had completely konked out from exhaustion just after he left her room. She grinned evilly as she spotted the crystal chandelier hanging delicately above their heads. 

She�carefully stooped down and removed one of Takeshi's shoes, gagging quietly at the horrid smell and then, as hushed and as gently as she could possibly be, she tossed his�ratty sneaker up in the beautiful light fixture. 

Snickering at her payback, she hurried on her way, down three more flights of stairs, down the hall and through her 'secret shortcut' (as she called it) through the kitchen, passing (and almost knocking over) Chef Gleft. She practically broke the swinging kitchen door as she spun through, falling over a chair on her way.

Sprawled over the floor, she heard a deep chuckling,  
"Are you all right, cutie?" She managed to pull herself up a bit and found someone kneeling in front of her. Two strong�arms wrapped around her waist,�lifted her up, and held her gently and tightly against a strong, well-built chest. She began to feel dizzy as soft fingertips caressed her face, brushing the loose strands of hair gently out of her face,

"I can't… I can't be late… Miss Satomi will..." She trailed off as she�strained to open her eyes and gazed upon her rescuer, "River…?" she�mumbled as her sight became clearer and revealed the oh-so-handsome pilot. She closed her eyes and moaned softly�as he pulled her closer. 

Slowly, a small smile graced his lips as he held her in his strong arms,  
"Are you alright? That was a big wipe out. And that's a pretty big bump…" He gently ran his hand across her forehead, gently touching the tender area just above her left eyebrow. "You'll be okay… you can trust me… I'll make sure that you'll be fine…" 

His handsome, comforting face was�the�final thing she remembered before she passed out 

"Jesse…? Jesse…? Wake up, Jesse. Wake up." Jesse shakily lifted a cold hand to her sore forehead as� Miss Satomi's voice rang through her throbbing head. Splitting pain racked her skull. She opened her eyes and they finally focused on the mussy-haired�Miss Satomi. She had been shaking Jesse rather roughly�for some time�as River stood by the side of the infirmary bed, his face, all the while, worriedly watching her. 

Jesse's eyes drifted up to River's sweet face. He smiled warmly down at her,  
"Feeling better?"

Jesse looked about,  
"Wh-where am I…? How did I get here…?" Jesse asked as Miss Satomi opened the curtains.

"Well," Miss Satomi began,  
"Prince Charming came charging into my office with you in his arms. You were almost late." 

Jesse closed her eyes as a blush spread across her face, hoping that River wouldn't notice,  
"I… I'm sorry Miss Satomi… I tripped…"

"Yes, Yes," Miss Satomi said, cutting her off, "Mr. Marque here made that quite clear. He was grabbing a bite to eat in the cafeteria and then you came blowing through and he caught you. Back on subject, we hurried you here to the infirmary and the nurse said you'll be fine to race today," Jesse groaned and held her arm over her aching eyes.

Miss Satomi just snapped.

"How can you not want to race! You _are_ going to race today! And you're going to like it!" She roared as she clenched her fists, her face beginning to turn a lovely shade of purple,

"YOU OWE ME�_EVERYTHING_ YOU HAVE AND YOU _ARE_ GOING TO RACE!" Tears began to sting the back Jesse's eyes as she shrank back into the covers, wanting to be as small as she possible could be.

"Hey," The two turned their attention to the blonde Canuck, "Don't you _dare_ talk to Miss Martin like that." He said, drawing himself up to his full height which well exceeded that of Miss Satomi's; nearly six foot four. 

Miss Satomi backed away from the tall Canadian. River clenched his fists and glowered down menacingly at her,  
"If Miss Martin doesn't want to race, I won't allow you to make her." 

Miss Satomi narrowed her eyes cockily,  
"She is racing, you incompetent fool. That is final!" River growled and threw himself at her, grabbing her suit by the collar and easily lifted her off the floor. Miss Satomi thrashed to get free but�failed as she hung a good�have a foot�off the ground.

"River! Please!" River turned and found that Jesse had managed to struggle out of bed and shakingly made her way over to him, "I-It's okay! I- I can race! I'm fine-- really I am!" 

River slowly lowered Miss Satomi and released her from his iron grip. The brunette adjusted her suit,  
"Jesse, I suppose you should thank this _brute_ for rescuing you after your fall. But don't get too chummy. I _highly_ dissapprove of fraternizing with the enemy.You're going to show�him up later,�anyhow." Miss Satomi said, her nose high in the air as she exited the room,

"Jesse!" She called back, "Come into my office once you're finished thanking Marque. We still need you fitted. Got it?" 

"Yes Miss Satomi." Jesse said, bowing to the door. Jesse turned to River, "So. . . I. . .�Thank you. . ." she said timidly.�

River smiled a spine-tingling smile,  
"No problem. . . Are you alright?" he asked as he lifted�a hand to the cold-compress bandaged to her forehead.

Jesse blushed delicately at the feeling of his soft fingertips on her burning skin. They stood there for a moment in silence.

"I have a question. . ." Jesse said softly, looking up into his soft eyes, "Why are you here so early? You've been around Team Satomi a lot lately. . . Is there any reason?" 

River's smile turned into a sad one as he dug his hands into his pockets and nervously kicked at the ground with the toe of his white cowboy boot,  
"I. . . I guess I missed you guys. And. . . Lately at Sledgemamma Headquarters. . . Well. . . Yamma, Dimma and Timma have been out on a trip and they're just coming back today for the race. . . so. . . I've been all alone in that huge building. Besides, since this is the International HQ, I'm granted entrance anytime. "

"Well. . ." Jesse thought for a moment,  
"Do you have any family to be with?"

River was silent and averted his gaze. Jesse understood,  
"Oh, I'm so sorry!" she whispered as she gently took his hand. River looked over to her questioningly and she blushed, "I. . . I know how you feel. . ."

"I visited my old man an' my mom's graves yesterday." He said quietly.�He trailed off as he glanced up and found the red-head's soft�eyes filling up with tears. She tried�to stop them from falling, but�when River spotted the thin trail of her tears winding down her�feathery white skin,�he quickly wiped her tears away.

"Please don't cry." he said, carressing�her cheek,�"I'm sorry. . . I'm just a big. . . a big buffoon. Um. . . I didn't mean to make you cry. . . I shouldn't have said that," 

"It's just so terrible!" she cried as she looked away.

River was taken aback,  
". . . Pardon?"

"How can anyone as kind as you have s-such a horrible thing happen to them?" She sobbed.�

River smiled and gently pulled her close into his arms. her heart lept to her throat and her face began to pinken as River ran a hand through her hair and took a deep breath, his breath tickling her on her cheek,  
"Last time I checked, I think I know a very sweet girl who's been orphaned. And I, for one, think that she's too pretty to cry for some other�stupid pilot,"

"Who . . .?" She asked. 

River smiled as he leaned in close and brought his lips close to her ear,  
"You."

**0o 0o 0o 0o 0o 0o 0o 0o 0o 0o **

**Did you enjoy it? Please DO review! I really look forward to it! Thank you to all of my readers once again!**

**Mysteria Pearl**


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